Willie J. Hilton: A Life Of Faith, Leadership And Service

July 15, 2006|By GEORGE TSIRIMOKOS

Eighty-three years ago this very day, Willie Hilton was born in South Carolina, the first of 12 children. His daddy was a sharecropper who saw to it that none of his children ever went hungry. Jim Hilton set for his son the example he was to follow throughout what has proven to be a life of adventure, creativity, leadership and dedication to his fellow man. Today, Bishop Willie J. Hilton, pastor of the Friendship Baptist Church in Newport News, is ultimate confirmation that the lessons a boy learns from his father will shape his path through life.

Lesson one: Young Willie questioned why his dad worked so hard sharecropping. Jim's curt but eloquent answer: "Shut up, boy; you don't know what you're talking about." This was how Jim Hilton defined for his son the role which a man must shoulder for his family. To this day, Bishop Hilton tirelessly preaches that a family is not complete without a responsible father.

Lesson two: Don't waste your time and energy griping. No complaints; in fact, just the opposite. The bishop is grateful for everything he has lived through, as each experience prepared him more completely for his life's work. He lived through the Jim Crow era, but bears no bitterness, choosing rather to reflect and advance on the lessons learned.

Lesson three: Thou shalt not steal. It seems young Willie was given 40 cents to go to the store for his mom. He was to bring home some cabbages, but he also got his hands on some Fig Newtons, which he hid under a tree. When his dad got in from a hard day in the field, he was not too tired to provide a lesson which would last young Willie for the rest of his thankfully long life. The whipping was administered with a limb appropriately taken from the very tree that was an unknowing accomplice the last time Willie ever took anything that wasn't rightly his.

He learned from his mom as well. She saw to it that her dozen children were well cared for, and she ordered their father to keep a milk cow so there would always be milk and butter as long as there were children to feed. And he learned to love his fellow man. The one great sadness of his life is his memory of the Nazi concentration camp at Dachau, which he helped to liberate. His compassion for suffering humanity extends beyond the boundaries of nationality or religion. He deplores the church which stresses only doctrine and neglects the total man.

As for doctrine, the bishop feels it would be a dreary world if we all believed the same. After all, he says, we've got to have Fords, Chevrolets, Cadillacs and Chryslers, so why shouldn't we have Jews, Christians, Muslims and whoever else subscribes to the concept that our duty is to love and help one another. Just as all cars serve the same basic purpose, so should all denominations.

The bishop's interface with the city of Newport News is extensive. As the police chaplain, he has been instrumental in establishing numerous civic programs, such as the police academy for various age groups, memorial services for fallen officers, and hosting a summer baseball camp. He runs his church like a big family, one with more young people than any other local church. And he is a father figure to these youngsters, demanding that they not drop out of school. He feeds them materially as well, through a well-established lunch program.

Bishop Hilton deems education the crucial element needed to address our myriad concerns. Accordingly, his most ambitious project is the Friendship Institute of Theology, now in its sixth year. The institute is staffed with a faculty of highly qualified and dedicated professionals, and has garnered substantive accreditations. It is eligible for GI Bill tuition assistance and grows year by year. Eventually, Hilton envisions that in addition to the associate and bachelor degrees, a graduate master of theology will be offered. In keeping with his ecumenical spirit, he wants the institute to teach the whole man and to accommodate scholars both young and old.

Happy birthday, Bishop Hilton. Boy, could we use more like you!

Tsirimokos is retired from the Air Force and is an educator and a member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. Send e-mail to gxt@cox.net. *